MINI Cooper Prices Paid and Buying Experience

Comments

The current BUY RATE (money factor) this month with BMW Financial is 280 (.00280) on Mini's. If you have top notch credit (I believe over 700?) you should be able to qualify for this rate. The dealer may try to add on a $400 security deposit to this rate that you get back at the end of your lease. This may or may not be normal.

They don't advertise this rate and I had to do a lot of searhing to find it. They were originally offering me .00335mf which is obscene. I would talk to them and tell them you want a better rate or walk. Unless of course your credit isn't great.

My car is on order and I will be leasing for 36 months 12K per year and I will be paying $386 including tax. The total value of the car is $26,820.00. Residual is 68%. My drive off fee is $1950 (all of this is going towards 1st month, Car Acquisition fee, Title and fees. It also includes that $400 security deposit which I am still discussing with my salesperson. None of it is giong to decrease the car value.)

In my opinion you are getting hosed. If your credit is good, I'd walk from this deal and reorder.

I wish I found the forum earlier when I was buying a new MINI. Anyway, like to share some thoughts: Got omy MINI S Conv. from Nick Alexander just a little bit below sticker price. $35,000 out of the door, with an MSRP just below $33,000 ) Great people to work with. In and out of the dealership with in 2 hrs. Not sure if I can post this.... Had a very bad experience at Assael MINI. I have been thinking about getting a new MINI for a long time, since I am a big MINI fan (have an original 71 MINI 1000, AUTO RHD). I went to Assael MINI first, since they are the closet to me. The sales person came out and greeted me, then asked what I currently drive. Told him, I have a Civic. Then, I asked him if I can have a MINI brochure. He told me MINI don't give out brochures. Then, walked away. ( Plus, ASSAEL's MINI service dept is terrible. No one answers the phone over there and if you try to leave them a message, most likely they won't reply.

We took a delivery of 07 Yellow Mellow Cooper just 2 weeks ago in CT. We have onyl two dealers in state and luckily we live 10 miles from one. My wife drove it and loved it and we ended up ordering our yellow mini with checkers on the mirrors and roof from factory, optioned exactly as we liked (premium, cold, sports packages). Took 5 weeks to get. They were not discounting it at all, but threw in rubber mats and we pursuaded them to forgo their mandatory VIN etching, paint sealant, etc. While overall it seems to be a trend that they would not discount the car off MSRP, it seems that our salesperson as well as their business manager were a bit indifferent as to whether we would buy a car or not. No pressure is good, but a sort of no enthusiasm on their part either - if I knew nothing about the Mini, I would probably walk away to buy something else. Anyway - 500 miles down the road now and mife wife still loves it and I drove it too for a few days and it has a personality that beats its relative lack of power (if this car was not for my wife, I would have gotten Cooper S). SO far only 33 mpg with 70% highway driving, but I hope it does get better.

I got an email from my MF saying that my car is ready for pickup in So Cal. I have a dilemma in that I'm stuck in Northern California for work until the 3rd. My MA is telling me that I have to sign the contracts by the end of the month. I could do that via faxing, etc., but I really think I should see the car before I sign for it.

Additionally, I'd love your input, do you guys think that there will be much of a change in interest rates for October, since it is the first time the 1/2 point cut will affect BMW Financial or other Lenders? If it will, then waiting until the 1st to pick it up would be worth it.

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Most MINI dealers offer nothing off of MSRP and then charge you a dealer "doc" fee on top of that. I have seen some have specials with $500 off MSRP + add the fee back.

What you spend after that just depends on the options you want. The stipper S is not a bad price, but if you want sports pack, premium, convenience, etc you end up with a lot of money in the car.

I test drove a new Cooper S just the other day and I TRIED to love the car, but that much power and FWD = massive torque steer. The car with sports pack and runflats is stiffer than my S2000 and stiffer than my RX-8, M5, ;vette, and any number of other cars used to be. But this is not "good" stiffness, it is rough ride stiffness.

Look could look at the Si coupe and sedan, the sedan for sure can be had a nice price. For $30k you could also look at the 350z, Mustang GT, and even a left over 07 G35 coupe ($2,500 in dealer money on those now).

The MINI is cute inside and out, and if you don't mind the BMW-esqe high failure rate and the FWD torque steer and small size can be a real hoot. But there are other FWD choices and lots of nice RWD cars to look at as well given the high price of a loaded MINI.

I forgot to mention, if the FWD turbo torque steer does not bother you then go test drive a Mazdaspeed3. You get a lot more space and nice handling and acceleration for less money - and probably more reliable. No free maintenance and less MPGs, however.

You could probably swing a new S2000 as well. RWD drop top that is quick handles super and returns 24 mpg around town.

I hope this is the correct forum for this question. If not feel free to move it.I am wondering about Edmunds True Cost to own. The Depreciation has a graphic with a slider bar$--------^---------$$$Now the way I see it is if you have $------------------^$$$You LOSE less at resaleIf you have $-^-----------------$$$You lose MoreBut the Mini always has terrific resale value and I figure I must be incorrect. can some one set me straight?Which is more preferable for depreciation the ^ to be more towards the $$$ or the $?Is that confusing enough? :confuse:

That's a really good question.. To me, the graph reads that the more the arrow is to the right ($$$).... the higher the depreciation (which is bad).

I think they are looking at the raw number on depreciation, not a percentage. So, even though the MINI might retain a higher percentage of the purchase price, it's depreciation rating is not any better than it's lower priced competitor, because of the actual depreciation in dollars.

But, I can look at two different cars, whose raw depreciation numbers are similar, and they have two very different ratings, so I'm at a loss to explain why.

That's a really good question.. To me, the graph reads that the more the arrow is to the right ($$$).... the higher the depreciation (which is bad).

Yeah that's how I'm reading it too, but I'd like to see Edmunds make it clearer so that $$$ = bad $ = GoodSomething like thisDepreciation$Good----------^----------$$$Badsince it's in the middle in this case it's average.It just doesn't make sense with some cars tho. Honda Civics are rated average to worse than average yet they sell very well and don't lose a lot of money from new so that means they should be closer to the $--^-----------$$$end of the scale but very few cars actually are.I'm baffled. :sick: Maybe Edmunds can clear it all up by changing it to

DepreciationScrewed---------^-------Great!

Something so that we know which end of the graph is the one we want to be on.

your question is a little unclear, but if you are asking which options are good--I can weigh in. I bought the car off the lot so it had more options than I thought I needed/wanted. And it turns out I was introduced to some that I love and others that I thought that I wanted that I totally wouldn't want now.

EXCELLENT OPTIONS:comfort access, autodim mirror and automatic headlights--all excellent and you'll be glad you ahve them. the rearview mirror in particular, it doesn't make things smaller liek it does when you just flip the mirror,

bluetooth is GREAT--when it works. Although I can always hear perfectly, people I speak to say the quality is terrible. and I've called my own answering machine and left a message and it is pretty bad. If this improves it's worth it, if not..it's a feature that's helpful in an emergency but I end up not calling people because they complain about the quality--it drives them crazy, the static/in-out reception etc.

UNNECESSARYfancy steering wheel. I never use the steering wheel--or rarely. since all the radio info is about two inches away from your right hand it's easier just to do it all from the radio/stereo buttons. both for the phone and the stereo controls it's MUCH easier to just do it all from the radio--and it's not like it's a stretch==you're in a mini

I never use cruise control. I don't know if you still have it without this steering wheel, but when I"m on the highway, I like to monitor my speed myself anyway.

arm rest: I was all gungho on the arm rest but it's such a TERRIBLE armrest, it's not worth the 200 bucks. IT's too low to 'rest' on, and the storage is terrible. Maybe one of those aftermarket armrests you can buy are bigger and better, this one is useless

fancy colors on the inside. I have interesting details--chrome mirrors, some color stuff on the insdie of the car. at first this was nice, now I hardly notice it' unless you are totally into the details, not worth the extra money, the car is already cute as it is.

sunroof--I hate my sunroof and I would not get one again. when you are on the highway, you can hear wind noise coming out of it--the car would be nice and quiet without that, and it doesn't block the sun during the summer--so you get uv rays on your face--if you want to avoid wrinkles like me, this is a pain. I ended up putting some cardboard between the net thinga nd roof to block the light all the summer anyway. I rarely use it and when I do I really can't tell a difference. You get more of a 'wind' feeling from rolling down the windows.

As far as being more spacious inside, the car is already roomy, so unless you are VERY tall in your seat, I can't see how the sunroof makes much of a difference. Also, since I live in NYC, the last thing I want to do is ride around town sucking in more pollution into my lungs by being more exposed to traffic.

I have the basic mini, not an S. I have not driven an S but the mini is just fine for highway. It goes faster than I intend often--like suddenly I'm at 80 before I realized it, so I don't feel like there is a lack of power. I'm a girl and not a car person so I'm no expert. But, really, the basic seems like plenty of zippiness.

oh, and in retrospect I wish I had gotten stripes of some sort. At first I thought they were too tacky. but then the mini is like such a little toy car and so cute, it reallyd oes call out for stripes! I may return this one after my 1 year lease and buy a new one and if so I'll probably get stripes.

There is probably something wrong with the bluetooth on your car if you have frequent problems. I use the bluetooth built in to my portable nav without complaints, so one built into a car should be better, not worse.

Most people are going to want cruise control unless all they do is drive in the city. It makes long highway trips much more comfortable.Its also nice to keep both hands on the wheel while driving even if the radio is within arms reach.

i am looking for an automatic minicooper S 2008 or 2007 (which year is recommended? 2008 is pricer for a mini cooper S options)

I am also looking for a list of options i should consider.

i live in Los Angeles.... so, do i need a sunroof?

I'm considering a premium package, i love the comfort package with the key less access key. my questions is: do i need this stuff? leather or leatherette or cloth? dynamic suspension necessary?

i am trying to keep this car as close to 24,000 as possible as it is my budget.

i am also considering the MINI Select option. Is this form of financing recommended? why or why not?

what colors look best, stripes combo? i love the white but i worry its too bland. black, i worry would get me killed on the fwy at night.

I've decided that long beach mini is the best deal for me. I'll let the forum know how that goes.

i did, however, go to assal mini in Monrovia for a test drive (that i had to push to get). and the ppl there don't know what they're doing and the sales manager is an [non-permissible content removed]. first, they told me that i couldn't order a 2007 anymore, which i can. secondly, they insulted my budget set for this car and then offered to throw in free mats. then, the sales manager pretended not to know what a mini select is.

i took the sales managers card. when i get my wonderful deal, I'll call him and let him know what i exactly think of him. maybe ill call tomorrow

so, ppl of the forum, i would really appreciate some input. I need help to buy my first car!

The dual panoramic moonroof is nice - except when you don't want the sun beating down on you. I have a convertible for when I want to be in the breeze. In a non-convertible I would like the choice of being in or out of the sun and the "holely" inner sun screen on the MINI is a major disappointment . I love having a moonroof, but having test drive a MINI on a hot, very sunny day (even with shades on) I can't say I would want to own a MINI with that moonroof in it. I think there is an aftermarket shade kit available to "solve" the problem, but I have not researched the price or how much trouble it is to install.

I would not waste your time with a dealership that did not treat you well. They really will not learn anything from you calling them back - if they have been in the business for a while they should know better.

If you live where it gets sunny and hot, you would need to seek out an aftermarket shade for the moonroof - I would think. Or you will need dark sunglasses and extra time to cool off the car. The backseat is about unusable, but even more light/heat gets in back there too.

A quick google shows some cloth things you can Velcro up to block all the sun, not sure how well they work or not - but I am positive there is something out there.

You do a good deal of complaints out noise with the roof open, probably more so on the MINI with just a large opening - but that is sort of par for the course with most moonroofs.

I might rethink the arm rest and the oak interior I'd have to see those in person first.The dealer is just so far away. :sick:

Sunroofs can be a problem for all the reasons mentioned.Premium Pkg is ok if you want that. Leatherette is a personal choice but you will cough up a lot for leather which must be maintained with cleaners. For me Leatherette which is vinyl, really wears a lot better IMO.As far as performance enhancing things why buy a Mini if you don't get them?Fuel economy has me looking at the Mini as it also offers good performance.Might have to buy a Prius if gas keeps going up.

I had always owned leather until the mini and i love my leatherette. I can get out of the pool/ocean, toss my scuba gear in the back, hop in the front with a wet suit and never worry about hurting anything. Go ette!

I get 30 MPG mixed, driving hard with my 07 Cooper S. It's not prius 45 mpg on 87 octane but smiles-per-mile are way higher!